Season
Seasons are a feature of Diablo III, the equivalent of Ladders from Diablo II. They were added in Patch 2.1. New Seasons are a major event and are typically released in tandem with patches, premiering original content, but a patch is never applied mid-Season. Seasons are considered the end-game of Diablo III. Seasons were introduced to the game's console version in March 2017. The PC and console season runs aligned in Season 10.2016-11-04, Necromancer Blizzcon Diablo 3 Fact Sheet. Diablo.net, accessed on 2016-11-07 Overview Seasons are only available to freshly created characters who must be leveled all the way from level 1 after the season begins. Seasonal characters have a separate stash, gold and other currencies, artisans, Paragon experience etc., starting fresh and completely clear when the season begins. These are also separate for Softcore and Hardcore Seasonal characters, making a total of four types per account. Seasonal characters take up one of the regular 12 or 15 character slots and will remain in this slot after the end of a Season, simply having their Season status removed.2014-08-26, Patch 2.1 Roundup - Seasons. Diablo Fans.com, accessed on 2014-08-27 Season participation benefits include exclusive rewards and unique Legendary Items, which are only available to Seasonal characters. It also awards special banner and transmogrification options. The goal and key feature of Seasons is the ability to climb Leaderboards by completing achievements, earning Conquests, or running Greater Rifts.2014-06-17, PATCH 2.1.0 PTR PREVIEW. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2014-06-21 Each type of Leaderboard is divided by goal, by class and by solo/group mode rather than a "by account" one2014-05-19, More Info From The Anniversary Dev Stream. Diablo Fans.com, accessed on 2014-05-20. There is a fierce competition within the Leaderboard of the same type, but it has no effect on other boards. After the season ends, all of the player's progress (Paragon experience, crafting recipes, items, gold, etc.) will be rolled into the main roster, and the season-exclusive items are added to the normal loot tables. In other words, all seasonal characters become normal, and with the start of the next season, new characters must fresh-start all over again, competing for the clear Leaderboards2014-04-24, Chatty Q&A: Blizzard talks Reaper of Souls and the future of Diablo 3. Shack News, accessed on 2014-04-2014. Each new season adds new rewards. Seasonal Journey Seasonal Journey is an interface that was added in Season 4, as a means of tracking player progress. This feature is divided into chapters, which include major milestones that are achievable by most players, and tiers, which are designed for advanced players. Completing tiers unlocks new portrait frame rewards, and the highest tier includes challenges which will take effort to achieve for even the most powerful characters.2015-06-23, PATCH 2.3.0 PTR PREVIEW. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2015-06-29 Tiers are unlocked after the completion of all chapters. Chapter goals are designed to be immediately accessible.2015-08-27, What’s New in Patch 2.3.0?. YouTube, accessed on 2015-08-27 Each chapter is progressively more difficult, featuring tasks from no-brainers such as leveling artisans, socketing items, and reaching certain character level, to challenges such as beating a Nephalem Rift on Torment IX difficulty in 4 minutes, beating solo Greater Rift rank 60, killing Greed on T10, or extracting 100 legendary powers via Kanai's Cube. There is a total of 9 chapters (S5), each giving progressively better rewards, including non-combat pet, full class set, and an additional stash tab (for Chapter 8). Conquests Conquests are special feats within Season, not related to Seasonal Journey (however, chapters 7, 8 and 9 require 1, 2 and 3 conquests to be completed respectively). These are among the hardest of goals to accomplish. They change with every Season. Examples include: *Kill 16 Bosses in 30 minutes *Gain 50 million Gold streak without venturing into The Vault *Complete Torment X Rift in 2 minutes *Beat a Greater Rift rank 45 without any Set Items *Complete all five Acts in 1 hour *Beat a Greater Rift rank 55 with all 24 6+ piece Class Sets *Complete 8 Set Dungeons with Mastery rating Either of the Conquests will be credited separately for Hardcore mode. Season Rebirth Season Rebirth is a feature that added in Season 5. This takes a non-Seasonal hero, reduces them to level 1, and strips all their gear. Any gear removed from a hero in this way is automatically mailed to the player in the non-Season, giving a player thirty days to reclaim the items at a later time. Paragon level, completed achievements, and other accomplishments all remain behind with non-Seasonal heroes. This feature serves as prevention of necessity to delete Seasonal characters when they transfer to normal character list. Season Lengths List of Seasons Season 1 Season 1 launched on Friday, August 29th, 2014 at 6 PM, following Patch 2.1. This season is currently the longest season to date at 157 days 22 hours. It ran from August 29 at 6 PM to February 3, 2015 at 4 PM. Limited-time rewards *Conqueror's Shako & Conqueror's Pauldrons transmogrifications *Exclusive banner: Shape, Pattern, Accent, Sigil Items introduced *Aether Walker (Wand) *Bottomless Potion of Rejuvenation (Potion) *Frydehr's Wrath (Crusader Shield) *Krelm's Buff Bulwark Set: **Krelm's Buff Belt (Belt) **Krelm's Buff Bracers (Bracers) *Leonine Bow of Hashir (Bow) *Remorseless (Mighty Weapon) *Sacred Harvester (Ceremonial Knife) *Vengeful Wind (Fist Weapon) *Follower Items: **Vadim's Surge (Enchantress Focus) **Slipka's Letter Opener (Scoundrel Token) **Hillenbrand's Training Sword (Templar Relic) Season 2 Season 2 launched on Friday, February 13, 2015 at 6 PM, a month after Patch 2.1.2. This season is currently the shortest season to date at 51 days 3 hours. It ran from February 13 to April 5 at 9 PM. The season offered new legendaries, conquests, and banner rewards.2014-11-07, FIRST LOOK: SEASON 2. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2014-29-11 Limited-time rewards *Conqueror's Legguards & Sabatons transmogrifications *Exclusive banner: Shape, Pattern, Accent, Sigil Items introduced *Belt of the Trove (Belt) *Gungdo Gear (Bracers) *Halo of Arlyse (Ring) *Odyssey's End (Bow) *The Undisputed Champion (Mighty Belt) *Wormwood (Staff) *Gems: **Esoteric Alteration **Gem of Ease **Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard Season 3 Season 3 launched on Friday, April 10, 2015 at 6 PM, following Patch 2.2. It ran for a total of 134 days 23 hours, ending on August 23 at 5 PM. Limited-time rewards *Conqueror's Cuirass & Gauntlets transmogrifications *Seasonal pennant *Exclusive portrait frame Items introduced *Dead Man's Legacy (Quiver) *Dread Iron (Mighty Belt) * (Ring) *Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac (Ring) *Blessed of Haull (Belt) *Ranslor's Folly (Bracers) *Spirit Guards (Bracers) *The Short Man's Finger (Ring) *Bottomless Potion of Amplification (Potion) *Gems: ** **Mutilation Guard Season 4 Season 4 launched on Friday, August 28, 2015, following Patch 2.3. This is the first season where both the start and end times of the season were at 5 PM. This resulted in an exact day range & 5 PM time for all succeeding seasons. Limited-time rewards *Exclusive portrait frames *Frost hound pet *Repeat chance at Conqueror's Shako & Conqueror's Pauldrons transmogrifications This season introduced the Season Journey as an additional feature for measuring progression and obtaining rewards, in addition to the Season Achievements of previous seasons.First Look - Season 4 Items introduced *The Demon's Demise (Hand Crossbow) *Lion's Claw (Fist Weapon) *Sacred Harness (Belt) *Dishonored Legacy (Mighty Weapon) *Fazula's Improbable Chain (Belt) *Henri's Perquisition (Mojo) *Bane of the Stricken (Gem) Season 5 Season 5 launched on Friday, January 15, 2016, following Patch 2.4. Limited-time rewards *Bonus stash tab #1 *Exclusive portrait frames *Wickerman pet *Repeat chance at Conqueror's Legguards & Sabatons transmogrifications Season 5 was the first season to not have temporarily exclusive legendary items, as the new legendaries in Patch 2.4 were made immediately available to both seasonal and non-seasonal characters. Instead, seasonal players would obtain a guaranteed free set for one class in the form of "Haedrig's Gift," a series of mail packages received upon completion of certain stages of the Season Journey up to the fourth chapter. The set obtained by each class is predetermined, and rotates with each new Season.2015-11-06, PATCH 2.4.0 PTR PREVIEW. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2015-11-15 New or redesigned legendaries at the time of the patch include: Blade of the Tribes, Heart of Iron, Elusive Ring, Kyoshiro's Blade, Wilken's Reach, The Twisted Sword. The Legacy of Nightmares ring set and some class sets also saw redesigns. This season notably introduced the first additional stash tab as a limited time reward. Season 6 Season 6 launched on Friday, April 29, 2016, following Patch 2.4.1. Limited-time rewards *Bonus stash tab #2 *Seasonal pennant *Exclusive portrait frames *Repeat chance at Conqueror's Cuirass & Gauntlets transmogrifications This season and patch premiered with many cosmetic transmogrification items and pets which were not exclusive seasonal rewards, but instead obtained as rare drops in chests, from monsters, and from the new Menagerist goblin. New legendaries were also released concurrently with the patch, and others given new powers: , , Skull Grasp, Flail of the Ascended, Augustine's Panacea, Bakuli Jungle Wraps, Halo of Karini, Crystal Fist, Fleshrake, Swamp Land Waders. Class sets and legendary gems also saw redesigns. Season 7 Season 7 launched on Friday, August 5, 2016, following Patch 2.4.2. Limited-time rewards *Bonus stash tab #3 *New pet: Dream of Piers *Exclusive portrait frames *Repeat chance at Conqueror's Shako & Conqueror's Pauldrons transmogrifications Item updates in concurrent patch * Bottomless Potion of Chaos (potion) * Khassett's Cord of Righteousness (new belt) * Trag'Oul Coils (bracers; power changed) * Girdle of Giants (mighty belt; power added) * Scarbringer (fist weapon; power added) * Gazing Demise (mojo; power added) * Starfire (wand; power added) * Invigorating Gemstone (gem; redesigned) * Darklight (flail; redesigned) * The Demon's Demise (hand crossbow; redesigned) * Firebird's Finery set (redesigned) The following changes were made to the season journey: *Haedrig's Gift is no longer awarded for specific Seasonal achievements; the bags are now rewarded for the completion of Chapters II, III, and IV. *Achievements requiring timed Nephalem Rift runs have been re-tuned. *Overall difficulty has been shifted around; easier, more tutorial-based achievements are in Chapters I-IV while more challenging tasks can be found in Slayer and beyond. *All Rift-related achievements have been updated to include the new Torment XI-XIII difficulties.2016-06-13, Patch 2.4.2 Focused Feedback - Season Journey. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2016-07-03 Season 8 Season 8 launched on Friday, October 21, 2016, and ended on December 30.2016-12-21, Grab your achievements while you can, because Season 8 is ending in Diablo 3. Blizzard Watch, accessed on 2016-12-25 It is the first time a season has launched with no patch since the start of a previous season. While the seasonal conquests rotated as usual, there was no concurrent batch of new legendary items, balance changes, or new game features. Limited-time rewards *Bonus stash tab #4 (10 total if every season was played) *Anguish's Grasp (Andariel's wings) *Exclusive portrait frames *Repeat chance at Conqueror's Legguards & Sabatons transmogrifications Season 9 Season 9 launched on January 6, 2017, following Patch 2.4.3. It ended on March 17.2017-03-03, Season 9 Ending Soon. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2017-03-08 Limited-time rewards *Pandemonium-themed portraits *Rocky (a cosmetic pet) *Repeat chances to earn Conqueror's transmogs and stash tabs *Haedrig's Gift set2016-12-23, First Look - Season 9. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2016-12-25 Item updates in concurrent patch * Red Soul Shard (new legendary gem) * Talisman of Akkhan (new amulet) * Saffron Wrap (belt; power added) * Faithful Memory (two-handed sword; power added) * Hellcat Waistguard (belt; power added) * Rabid Strike (fist weapon; power added) * The Barber (dagger; power added) * Manald Heal (ring; power added) * Defender of Westmarch (shield; redesigned) * Jeram's Bracers (bracer; redesigned) * Wrath of the Wastes (set; redesigned) * Roland's Legacy (set; redesigned) * Embodiment of the Marauder (set; redesigned) * Inna's Mantra (set; redesigned) * Spirit of Arachyr (set; redesigned) * Delsere's Magnum Opus (set; redesigned) Season 10 Season 10 launched on March 31, 2017, following Patch 2.5.0. It ended on June 23.2017-06-09, Season 10 Ending Soon. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2017-07-06 It was the first Season for the console version of Diablo III.2017-03-17, First Look - Season 10. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2017-03-19This season was 2 weeks longer than the 3 previous seasons (7, 8 & 9) due to the Necromancer release before Season 11. Limited-time rewards *Black Soulstone-themed portraits *Loremaster pennant, inspired by Book of Cain *Repeat chances to earn Conqueror's transmogs and stash tabs *Haedrig's Gift set Season 11 Season 11 launches on July 20, 2017, following Patch 2.6.0. It is the first season to feature the class, since the arrival of the Diablo III: Rise of the Necromancer expansion.2017-07-05, First Look: Season 11. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2017-07-06 There were no new items or balance changes for other classes. It was noted that personal bests from Season 2 will be removed with Season 11. This 9 Season difference will carry on into Season 12 with Season 3 being removed then. The season premiere date was moved from Friday to Thursday, in order to hotfix potential issues before the weekend. The Season will end on October 20.2017-10-06, Season 11 Ending Soon. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2017-10-09 Limited-time rewards * Emerald Dragon pet * Treasure Goblin-themed portrait set * Repeat chances to earn Conqueror's transmogs and stash tabs * Haedrig's Gift set Season 12 Season 12 will begin on November 9, 2017, following the upcoming Patch 2.6.1 patch. Limited-time rewards * Fiacla-Géar wings * Heaven portrait * Haedrig's Gift set: ** Barbarian: Immortal King's Call ** Crusader: Seeker of the Light ** Demon Hunter: Natalya's Vengeance ** Monk: Uliana's Stratagem ** Necromancer: Trag'Oul's Avatar ** Witch Doctor: Spirit of Arachyr ** Wizard: Vyr's Amazing Arcana Development The concept for seasons in Diablo III existed as early as the game's pre-release version.2016-11-29, Jay Wilson on Twitter. Twitter, accessed on 2016-12-01 Josh Mosqueira first announced seasons as an implementation of "ladders" in March 2014, to be included in the first major content update (Patch 2.1) following the release of Reaper of Souls.Blizzard Entertainment 2014-03-24. Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Release Party. Diablo Somepage, accessed 2014-04-02. Seasons were initially not present in the console version of Diablo III.2014-11-27, BlizzCon 2014 – Diablo III: What’s Next Panel Transcript. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2015-03-16 At BlizzCon 2016, Blizzard announced that seasons would be coming to console players.2016-11-05, BlizzCon Recap: Day 2. Blizzard Entertainment, accessed on 2016-11-07 This was implemented when Season 10 launched in March 2017. References Category:Gameplay Category:Diablo III Category:Seasons